(a) Annually, data from the Tennessee comprehensive assessment program (TCAP) tests, or their future replacements, will be used to provide an estimate of the statistical distribution of teacher effects on the educational progress of students within school districts for grades three through eight (3-8). Teacher effect data shall not be retained for use in evaluations for more than the most recent five (5) years. A student must have been present for one hundred fifty (150) days of classroom instruction per year or seventy-five (75) days of classroom instruction in a block schedule before that student’s record is attributable to a specific teacher.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 49-1-606

  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • signed: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed, or any other symbol or methodology executed or adopted by a party with intention to authenticate a writing or record, regardless of being witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b)

(1) The estimates of specific teacher effects on the educational progress of students will not be a public record, and will be made available only to the specific teacher, the teacher’s appropriate administrators as designated by the local board of education and school board members. The state department of education shall provide raw test score data to LEAs as soon as practicable after receipt of the data, but in no case later than June 30. The estimates of specific teacher effects may also be made available to the state board approved teacher preparation programs of individual teachers. The estimates made available to the preparation programs shall not be a public record and shall be used only in evaluation of the respective teacher preparation programs. Each institution or postsecondary system receiving the estimates shall develop a policy to protect the confidentiality of the data.
(2) The estimates of specific teacher effects on the educational progress of students may be made available to parties conducting research for, or on behalf of, the department, schools, LEAs, or postsecondary institutions; provided, however, that the estimates made available shall not be a public record and shall be used only for research purposes. Each party receiving the estimates of specific teacher effect data for research purposes shall execute a signed data sharing agreement with the entity providing the data that includes provisions safeguarding the privacy and security of the data.
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